Southampton’s forward line is a point of strength but Mauricio Pochettino was still disappointed to have missed out on signing Philippe Coutinho from Internazionale in January. The Brazilian, who had a loan spell under Pochettino at Espanyol, signed for Liverpool and is likely to be in opposition at St Mary’s on Saturday. “Coutinho has that same quality that Ronaldinho and Messi have, but he has much to prove yet,” said Pochettino. Despite recent progress, so too do Liverpool, whose record on the south coast is wretched.